Review: The Iron Traitor, by Julie Kagawa

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15811405I was so excited when I received this ARC. I even did a happy dance. But no, you don’t wanna see it. This book is the second in the Call of the Forgotten series, which is a spin off of the Iron Fey series. I loved The Iron Fey so much, I just knew I’d love this one as well. I was not wrong.

This book takes place a few days after The Iron Prince ended. We find Ethan Chase trying to get back to normal life. Well, as normal as you can get, when you see the fey no one else can see. He’s determined to be a good boyfriend to Kenzie and to NEVER go back to Nevernever. But you know what they say….

When his nephew, Keirran, goes missing, Ethan decides to go and find him as quickly as possible. But finding him and stopping him from doing something so drastic, are two different things. Keirran is determined to save his love, even if it causes great damage and forever change this world. But Ethan tries to help him anyways, cuz he’s family. But that help, just may be the thing that destroys him.

I love that we get a glimpse of Meghan, Ash, Grim and Puck. It was wild seeing Ash as a formidable man and father. He was frightening. But I just love Puck!! I loved the way he never changed and was still the jokester at times, but at the same time, he could also step up and help.

All Puck’s scenes made me wanna go back and read the Iron Fey from the beginning. Many of Ethan and Keirran’s scenes reminded me of Ash’s and Puck’s adventures, from the Iron Fey. They may be different, but they fight together against anything that was thrown their way.

Grim still helped them, too, and yet disappeared when trouble comes. I wonder about that cat….

This book took me four days to read, and I made sure to highlight everything I deemed important. I don’t wanna forget a thing. But that ending…..A CLIFFY!!!!! I am speechless….What…..where……how…..And now I have to wait til next year!! I was seriously shocked. I NEVER saw that coming.

Well done Ms. Kagawa. You have written another fabulous YA book. And, like you tweeted me, your muse was well feed by my tears. So glad I could help you out. 😉

I received this ARC for an honest review.

~Melpomene

Release day: October 29th
Buy it now: The Iron Traitor (The Iron Fey)

Amazing book signing last night!

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Last night was the first night of Atria Indie Author’s fall tour with their 3 best selling authors – Colleen Hoover, Jamie McGuire and Abbi Glines! These authors are really huge in the New Adult/Romance world of books and 2 of us Muses have been pretty much beside ourselves with excitement and not doing a very good job of hiding it very well! Melpomene is a huge fan of Colleen’s and had introduced her books to me, and I promptly fell in love and read every single book she wrote.  We were both ecstatic to see all 3 authors coming to this area.

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The big day finally came and it definitely lived up to the hype! Melpomene was so excited that her fabulous husband drove her down early in the day and she basically cased the joint all day. However, she was not alone – there were a few hardcore fans there to keep her company on and off during the day. By the time I met her there she was pretty much telling others in line about our little blog and discussing the awesomeness of the authors. They were in line to get a line number to get books signed.  Our friend, Vi, joined us there and it was pretty great to be amongst our people – other people who loves books as much as we do.

Vi went upstairs to sit down and save 2 seats while we got our 2 line numbers. By the time I went to sit down another huge fan was reporting us to the bookstore for saving seats unlawfully or something. Which was very confusing because this other woman was in the front row and at this point the rest of the rows were pretty empty so I was confused as to why she was so upset, my line number was 16, the friends Melpomene had made were 13 and 14. Vi is a petite woman who was there only to meet us and this other woman kept talking about it very loudly for about 45 minutes so it was kind of hilarious to see her start a mini riot. We owe Vi lots and lots of favors! I would have gladly sat 3 or 4 rows back if this woman would have asked us to! So that was the mini drama of the night.

Then the authors came in – Colleen first, then Abbie Glines and finally Jamie McGuire.

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I just have to say that it’s not fair for authors to be this talented AND pretty! Then they had to open their mouths and be funny in person too. Colleen came out taking pictures of the crowd and when the commentator started asking them questions she immediately did not want to answer – as in she preferred one of the others answered first. What struck me the most is how much they seem to get along. I don’t know how it works in other publishing houses but either these three are superb actresses or they really are friends.

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Most of the time was spent laughing – the authors were charming and answered the questions about their current releases, their musical inspirations and their advice for aspiring authors. My favorite answer of the night was Colleen’s that she likes Eminem, but that’s just because I do too. All 3 authors signed a ton of books, bags, kindle covers, and pretty much whatever we asked them to. They were super friendly with the fans and took pictures. The place was packed but they didn’t give the impression that they were getting tired at all.

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I left a bigger fan because all 3 were great in person! If you can make it to one of their tour dates – GO!! Atria made it a very cool event with some neat swag and it was very organized. Plus you know the AWESOME AUTHORS kind of made it even better. I might still be on a weird kind of high this morning 🙂 I’ve been to multiple signings this year and it’s just so fun to be around people who love to read and people who are interested in what you’re interested in. We made friends sitting there, all of us talking about our favorite books, which authors we loves and getting recommendations for more. Such an excellent experience!!

Oh and you might want to stick around this week and next for some possible giveaways tied into this awesome signing!!

~Clio

New Releases for October 22, 2013

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Happy New Release Day!! I’m hoping that you woke up to all the books you were waiting for. Here are some of the books, that have caught my eye.
16055479The Temptation of Lila and Ethan (Ella and Micha)
This is the third book in The Secret series. I’ve read the first in this series. The second keeps taunting me. And now that one is out, it’s really gonna get annoying. So I must hurry up. so I can read about Lila.

16070143Teardrop (Teardrop Trilogy)
I am sooooo excited for this one. I loved her Fallen series and I know this is going to be good also. She writes the perfect YA books. I can’t wait to start this one.

17860217Trust in Me: A Novella (Wait for You)
This is a novella, which is basically Cameron’s POV. I’ll admit, the first one didn’t snag my attention, like I hoped. However, I love the male’s POV, so this may redeem it. So it looks like I may be buying this one. 🙂

10616322Allegiant (Divergent Trilogy)
And last but definitely not least, we’ve Allegiant. I know for a fact that no one will be on their computers, unless it’s to update Goodreads, when this downloads to their kindles. Since I’ll be on the road, driving home from a book signing, I’ll be staying off it, until I can sink my teeth into this one. I am so excited for this last book. I think the hype about the Divergent movie will help the sales of this one. Plus being only $6.99 pre-ordered, can’t beat the price.

Now go and enjoy your books.

~Melpomene

Review: The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

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6065182Sarah Waters is known primarily for her erotic Victorian era fiction, however, she takes a detour in her latest (well, latest being 2009) offering. Waters employs the classic first person narrative in the form of Dr Faraday – the ever so sensible and stiff upper lipped family doctor – and this lures the reader into a sense of trust and comfort whilst they get ready to “listen” to the story.

Set in 1947, two years after the war has ended, and a time in which the country was in the midst of economic recovery and social reform, The Little Strangers tells the tale of a grand house that was once the epicenter of social royalty in the early 1900’s.   Throughout the years, the house and indeed the owners, have crumbled into financial despair.  Without giving too much away, let’s just say things aren’t necessarily what they seem at Hundreds Hall.

As mentioned previously, Waters is known and celebrated for her Victorian era erotic fiction.  As shown in this novel, Waters has proved she is not just a one trick pony; the characters are what drive this novel, and Waters is exceptional at bringing them to life.  A great percentage of the novel is devoted to build up, and making the reader care for the characters.  It takes a bit of getting used to as readers are used to instant gratification in most of today’s novels.  Waters has stylized her writing and pace to match those of Henry James, Wilkie Collins and Emily Bronte.  Through this choice in style, it allows the reader to better imagine the world of 1947.  In fact, Waters is so accurate, that I believe this is the first book that I’ve read, since Enid Blyton, that doesn’t have any swearing, violence, or sex.   It is a good old fashioned ghost story, told in a way that will feel authentic, and yet ageless.

At over 500 pages in length, this is not a quick Halloween night read.  This novel is to be savoured and devoured.  The Little Stranger is an intelligent, scary, atmospheric, and slow (in a good way) read.  Well worth the read if you are looking for something different this Halloween!   Just try not to scream too loudly if you hear a floorboard creak!

Buy it here:

The Little Stranger

Review: I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb

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20131016-195916.jpgHow do you define courage? It can be exemplified in many different ways. A firefighter rushing in to a burning building. A shy student standing up in front of the class to give a speech. A child riding a bicycle without training wheels for the first time. Malala’s story gives a whole new meaning to the word. If by some chance you haven’t heard of Malala, that’s even more of a reason to read this book.

The prologue takes us back to the day that Malala was shot as we are given a brief overview of that fateful moment. We then get a glimpse into the childhood of Malala’s parents. This backstory provides us with the knowledge of what exactly a woman’s role was and still is in many parts of Pakistan and the Middle East. Having this background knowledge made me even more appreciative of the strength and courage shown by not only Malala but her entire family. I also felt a huge amount of respect for her father for following his heart and not bowing down to traditional roles he disagreed with. As the leader of this family, he truly set the stage for all the good things that followed.

We are next taken through her childhood and witness tragic events such as 9/11 and the Taliban’s invasion of Pakistan through her eyes, those of a young girl. Malala’s story made my heart weep at the tragedy she faced but more importantly at the bravery of this young girl who wanted nothing more than to simply go to school. Such a simple thing but yet one that most children in more industrialized countries take for granted. We are reminded of the harsh lives that children around the world face.

In Malala’s words, looking the other way is not an option when thirty-two million girls around the world are not in school. She’s not asking for anything special, just the right to go to school. Most people would withdraw from the public eye after coming so close to death for simply standing up for their beliefs. Not this young woman. Although her family has not returned to Pakistan, she continues to speak out for all children.

I eagerly anticipated the release of this book and was not disappointed. It was everything I expected and more. I had to keep reminding myself that this horrible tragedy happened to a fifteen-year-old girl. I am simply in awe of this young lady and can’t wait to see what else she accomplishes in her life. My favorite quote from this book also happens to be the last one:

I am Malala. My world has changed but I have not.

~Thalia

Buy it now I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

Review: Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

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13539044 Although this book had been made into a movie and one of my favorite actresses even won an Oscar for her portrayal in it, I still had no idea what this was about or if it was a good book. So I picked up the audiobook completely blind to what this was about, which I much prefer to seeing the movie and then reading the book.

Pat is just getting out of a psychiatric hospital and he’s back living in his parents home. He is unclear on exactly what has transpired to land him in the psych ward, how much time he spent there or what has happened out in the real world since he’s been gone. All Pat knows is that he wants “apart time” from his wife, Nikki, to be over now. He doesn’t get along well with his father, his mother is protecting him from reality and when Pat meets Tiffany, a troubled woman just like himself, he doesn’t know what to make of this new life.

During the first few chapters of this book I was confused as to what exactly was reality and what was not. But as I read on that seemed to be the point of the book – to be as confused as Pat was and to not be able to discern what was past or present. Pat struggles to maintain his grip on what is happening in the present and comes to realize that he has been away for closer to 4 years. He wants to see his wife Nikki more than anything and can’t understand why that isn’t happening. He becomes friends with Tiffany and as that friendship grows, she helps him in ways that he can’t quite grasp, coming to grips with everything that’s happened.

This book was surprisingly funny and touching. There was an awful lot of sports references and as one who really hates sports I thought that would bother me but instead I saw it as what it was – the bonding between men when there is no other ways to bond.

4 stars

~ Clio

Buy it Now The Silver Linings Playbook: A Novel

Price Drops on Some Favorites!

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Waking up on the weekend to price drops on books by a favorite author … sigh … It can only be beat by a lovely cup of coffee. 🙂

Julie Carobini writes sweet, charming beach reads. I’ll be picking up a few more today for $0.99!

Enjoy!

-Calliope

20131019-073717.jpg Buy it now Chocolate Beach

20131019-073726.jpg Buy it now Truffles by the Sea

20131019-073737.jpg Buy it now Sweet Waters

20131019-073747.jpg Buy it now Fade to Blue

20131019-073755.jpg Buy it now The Spa at Winter Beach

Review: Where the Mountains are Thieves by David Marion Wilkinson

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20131018-100349.jpg This dramatic novel set in the deserts of west Texas is about a man trying to find the best life for himself, his wife, their marriage, and their son. The problem is, he doesn’t have a whole lot of ambition, and his myopic focus sabotages his efforts.

The first two-thirds of the book is description. The narrator/protagonist describes his failures, marriage, travels, new home and feelings about the new home, desire to be a good husband and father, and finally, his baseball team. Well, the baseball team he helps coach.

I struggled through this descriptive section. It was rambly, depressing, and sloooooowwwwww. I almost quit reading. But since I was interested in whether this guy was going to get a life — and how his wife and son would fare — I trudged on.

The last third of the book is full of action: A dalliance, an accident, a success, a failure, another move. I was on the edge of my seat, wiping tears from my eyes and giving the protagonist a stern talking-to. Wilkinson made the book come alive, and thank goodness he did.

I was about to give this novel 2 stars — but the last part of it is worthy of 4. So if you think you have the patience for 300 pages of 2 star material, you will be treated to some excellent writing and dramatic action in the last 150 pages.

If only the publisher demanded the first 300 pages be edited down to half that, Wilkinson would have a 4-star novel on his hands… reminiscent of a Pat Conroy read.

I’m glad I read Where the Mountains are Thieves. Just wished it didn’t take so long to get to the good stuff. 🙂

-Calliope

Buy it now Where the Mountains are Thieves

Review: Stripped, by Jasinda Wilder

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What can I say, the premise of this book intrigued me. A virgin stripper and a movie playboy. Doesn’t that intrigue you?

Grey grew up in a very sheltered household. I mean, VERY sheltered. I could relate to that part, the most. I was completely clueless all through high school, but never to this extent. This was downright scary, how she could do nothing remotely worldly, according to her father. All she wants to do is dance and make movies. Both are of the devil, so her pastor father doesn’t allow this kind of activities.

“You must break free, in yourself.”

But when her life is completely turned upside down, she makes the decision to leave and do what she needs to do to follow her dreams. Even if that entails becoming a stripper, just to get through college.

This is the hardest thing she’s ever had to do. She is barely making it and the dancing is taking a piece of her away, every time.

But then she sees him. Dawson Kellor. Super sexy movie star is watching her dance. She can’t turn away. He can’t turn away. She knows something is happening.

…I’ll never return from this place, for I know the taste of temptation. I’ve sinned; I’ve fallen.

He wants her. She wants him, but she doesn’t want to want him. He is famous and can have anyone. Why would he want a stripper?

“I’ve always been entitled, you know? I’m that horribly obnoxious kind of person who’s always had everything and owns the fucking world, okay? But I’m not entitled to you. I have to earn you.”

The torment she goes through, while trying to figure out how to survive, is gut wrenching. She was not meant for this world. But he won’t let her go. No matter what she does, there is no escaping this man. He is her jail.

“His arms are like prison bars, but it’s a cell I have no desire of escaping.”

Throughout the entire book, you see what this super sheltered life has done to her. She can barely function. She struggles with what she believes is wrong and evil, but her heart doesn’t doesn’t give up. She breaks through those barriers and you rejoice with her.

“I don’t know what to believe.”

“Believe in me.”

This is the second book I’ve read by Jasinda Wilder, and I like her style. I can’t wait to see what’s next on her agenda.

~Melpomene

Buy it now Stripped